The following is just a tentative list of
conflict terminology based on definitions from dictionaries, history, and
observation. Any feedback to add more terms is welcome..

The reason I am writing this article is the need for a minimum level of
agreement on the conflict terms used in the media around the world. The bias
in reporting and analysis made most of the conflict terminology used in
different ways to achieve goals of writers, away from objectivity and
professionalism. This is an attempt to bring back some respect and decency to the
profession of journalism and the media in general.

The conflict encompassing the world today is between the US-UK-Israel as
one camp and groups opposing them all over the Arab and Muslim Worlds, as
another camp. The corporate media in the first camp call the US-UK-Israeli (UUI)
actions as the "War on Terror." However, most media around the world,
including alternative media in the UUI camp, call it "invasion."

The corporate media of the UUI alliance describe Iraqis, Afghanis, and
Palestinians opposing the invading armies as "terrorists," "insurgents," or
"rebels." However, most media around the world, including alternative media
in the UUI camp, call them resistance or guerrilla fighters.

The difference in the usage of these conflict terms is important because
they are used to justify the actions of each camp. That is why it may not be
easy to persuade journalists from both camps to use a common list of
conflict terminology. Anyway, it doesn't hurt to try. I'll attempt to give
an objective definition for each term, then I'll comment on the usage of the
term particularly in the "embeded" UUI camp.

1.Politics is the process of who gets what resources, when, and
how.

Political activities aim ultimately to controlling
wealth in any society. How the budget is going to be decided and who
benefits most is the end outcome of the competition. In the US, the media
obscures the term to refer to differences on other issues.

2.War is using force to achieve political means. It is fought by
regular military forces from different countries.

There is no war in Iraq or Afghanistan because there
are no Iraqi or Afghani regular armed forces. There is resistance to foreign
occupation in both countries. The term, "occupation" was mentioned in the UN
Security Council resolution, in reference to presence of US forces in Iraq.

3.Civil War is using force to achieve political means. It is
fought by regular or irregular military forces from the same country.

As long as there are foreign forces in Iran and
Afghanistan, there is no civil war. There are US-backed Iraqis fighting
Iraqis resisting the US occupation.

4.Rebellion is fighting one's own legitimate government in order
to achieve political goals. It involves an open, armed, and organized
resistance.

As a result, it's inaccurate to describe Muqtada
Al-Sadr, for example, as a rebel, until at least the government can be
legitimate and truly sovereign.

5.Uprising is an unarmed rebellion that is
confronted by
applying government force against the civilian population.

This term accurately applies to the peaceful
activities of the Palestinian people and groups in opposing the Israeli
occupation, such as protests, demonstrations, sit-ins, and hunger strikes.
But it does not apply to the armed struggle.

6.Insurgency is an armed uprising against one's own government
but it is less organized than a rebellion.

What's happening in Iraq is not an insurgency
because the fighting is between Iraqis and foreign forces or between Iraqis
and other Iraqis who are recruited by foreign forces. A more accurate term
is resistance to the foreign occupation of the country.

7.Guerrilla is one who engages in irregular warfare in
connection with a regular war.

In the first stages of the fighting, during 2003,
Iraqi armed activities were accurately described by even the US military
commanders as a guerrilla warfare. However, it has taken a more coherent and
coordinated shape, particularly in 2004. Thus, a more accurate term is
resistance, if the fighting is aimed at the opposing military forces.

8.Militants are persons aggressively involved
in fighting.

This term should not apply to political leaders or
activists, as many journalists do.

9. Resistance is the act of using arms to oppose the invading
armed forces.

This is the term used throughout the 20th century to
describe opposing foreign occupation forces, particularly German occupation
forces in Europe. It should apply to groups fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan,
and Palestine.

10.Terrorism is terrorizing or being terrorized, a mode of
governing, or of opposing government by intimidation.

The term should be used to describe individuals,
groups, and governments, which are involved in terrorizing the civilian
populations. Corporate media journalists use the term routinely to describe
individuals and groups but never use to describe the governments which
target the civilian population by killing them, destroying their homes and
fields, or by subjecting them to collective punishment. For a balanced
approach, both terms of terrorism and state terrorism should
be used.

11.Illegal Settlement Activity refers to the construction of population
centers for the invading group on confiscated lands inside the invaded or
occupied territories.

This activity is illegal because it violates the
international law that prohibits changing the demographic status of the
occupied territories. That is why the Israeli activities in the occupied
territories should be accurately referred to as illegal settlement activity.
If the term settlement is used alone, it misleads readers to think positively
of the activity.

Ronald D Kennedy of California
suggested that Israeli illegal settlers in the occupied Palestinian
territories be called squatters. If his suggestion is followed, then
illegal settlements may also be called squatterments.

Hilmi Salem of Canada objected to the term
"squatter" because it means one who or that which squates, i.e.
to
settle on a piece of land without title or payment; especially one who
settles on land without permission or right. This does not apply to the
Palestinian territories which are owned by the Palestinian people. He
suggested the use of colony and colonist instead. But the
problem with the term "colony" is that it refers to a whole country, like
Egypt or India, which were British colonies.

So far, the most accurate term to describe
the Israeli occupation activities in confiscating and annexing Palestinian
lands is "illegal Israeli settlement activities."

12.Sunna and Shi'a are the two
major Islamic sects or schools of thought.

The apostrophe before the letter a in Shi'a represent
a glottal Arabic sound.

13.Sunnis and Shi'is are followers of the
Sunna and Shi'a schools.

Journalists in the Western media in general use the
term Shiite in reference to Shi'i. This is a derogatory term,
particularly in English, that should not be used. More important is that it
is inaccurate and does not comply with the Arabic way of adjectivizing, as
in the case with Sunni.

14. Enemy Combatant: The term, Enemy Combatant,
is used by the Bush administration to refer to a person designated by the US
President as an enemy fighter, even if he/she is not a member of an army,
like Guantanamo prisoners. The term also applies to US citizens, like
Padilla. The US courts ruled in 2004 that even if a person is classified as
such, he/she could have access to federal courts, which means the right to
an attorney, due process, and a trial.

This is an attempt to bring some order to the chaotic
state of conflict terminology. I welcome any serious feedback. I hope that
this list can be increased, reviewed, and improved, which may hopefully
decrease some of the confusion accompanying the conflict insanity of our
time.

While the Israeli army “enters” a Palestinian
area, Palestinians “infiltrate” an Israeli-controlled area (Jerusalem
Post, 23 September 2004). The word with the most negative meaning is most
often used in reference to Palestinians or Arabs. In addition there is
continual repetition of words such as terror, usually linked with
Palestinians, Arabs, Moslems, etc. which fixes a concept firmly in the mind
of the reader or listener.

Living in Gaza, I heard about the imposing of
closure, the lifting of closure, opening, closing several times in a
day. The “lifting of closure” is regularly repeated with positive effects
for the “lifter” although the residents see little difference. And the
Israelis have been “withdrawing” from the Gaza Strip for years. There
is little change except again the so-called “withdrawer” is left with credit
for a withdrawal that rarely takes place. They are also said to be “dismantling”
checkpoints and illegal outposts.

Israeli Police have a right to protect citizens but
Palestinians and Arabs are always acting or moving “suspiciously”.
Although neither Arab nor Palestinian, I work and have worked in the past in
the Middle East. One day I was accused by a soldier of driving in a
“suspicious” manner. I don’t know how I did so on an empty, two-lane road in
broad daylight or even how one drives “suspiciously”.

The Israelis often use the word “incitement”.
Only Palestinians and Arabs “incite” but very few Israeli Jews are said to
“incite” although there is daily “incitement” from every level of Israeli
society including the Cabinet. School books are often said to “incite”
Palestinians. Has anyone ever looked carefully at Israeli teaching
materials? And on the question of text books, for decades, books in schools
were brought to Gaza from Egypt and to the West Bank from Jordan. These were
only allowed in after being carefully checked in advance by Israeli
authorities.

It would be nice to have agreement or standard on
using terms relating to the Arab/Islamic/Moslem world such as:

Islamic web site: What is an Islamic web site?
Is it about Islam or is it simply from the Arab/Islamic world? Unless it is
a religious site, it should be named after the country, city or group
sponsoring the site. One does not say Christian web site unless it is
sponsored by a Christian group.

Arab world: There should be a firm definition.
Neither Afghanistan nor Iran is Arab. Repeatedly they are included in the
“Arab World”.

Abu Khalil: This is not a “nom de guerre”, an
alias, or anything sinister. It is simply a way of calling someone: the
father of Khalil.

Jama'a, Gama'a (singular), Gama'at, Jama'at
(plural): A variation is used in a number countries. It has no sinister
meaning, it is simply a group or groups. The G is used in the Egyptian
dialect and the J elswhere. The ' in a'a stands for a glottal Arabic sound,
that is not spoken by English speakers.

Jihad: there is great confusion, sometimes
deliberate, over this word. It can also be the first name of a male. It is
overused in the “western world” without knowledge of its true meaning.

Until next time,

Ron Wilkinson, Bethlehem, Palestine.

Dominionists calling someone "anti-Semitic"
is "semantic terrorism"

I am encouraging pro-America activists to begin using
the terms “Dominionism” or “Dominionists” instead of fundamentalists,
neo-cons, etc. Dominionism is an umbrella term for Jews, Christians,
Muslims alike who want bible- based government.

And in response to the empty charge of “anti-Semitism”,
I tell peace activists to point out that Semite refers to a group of
African-Asian languages, not Jews and that when called anti-Semite they are
being victimized by semantic terrorism.

Larry Darby, attorney

Montgomery, Alabama

September 29, 2004

Regarding Anti Semitic, statement in "Conflict
Terminology" I believe using the statement referring to a Language (Semitic)
Is not on point as what we are trying to bring to the new reader, who is
trying to understand the proper usage of correct Terminology.

When called Anti Semitic. My favorite reply to
this ignorant statement is. "I have Jewish & Palestinian friends, they are
both the children of SHEM." Please don't fall for the Zionist Big Lie and
deny the true heritage of the Palestinians as Semitic, they are also the
children of Shem."